Doesn't Really Matter
by Rumiko
Summary: Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Lavender are at Harry and Sirius's house. All good from there? No. Sequel to Temptation is Callin'. H/Hr&R/L! *4TH CHAPTER UP* R/R!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: All characters belong to JKR, meaning I don't own anything but the plot.  
  
A/N: OK, well, here's the sequel to Temptation is Callin'.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Oh, just what I asked for  
  
You're so loving and kind  
  
And I can't believe you're mine  
  
Doesn't matter what they say  
  
'Cause you know I'm gonna love you anyway  
  
Doesn't matter what they do  
  
'Cause my love will always be with you"  
  
'Doesn't Really Matter' -Janet Jackson  
  
  
  
  
  
Harry looked out the window in his room, the cool summer breeze blowing on his face. It was past midnight, and he was hoping to see an owl from either Ron, Hagrid, Dumbledore, or the person he missed the most-Hermione. Harry had sent a letter to Hermione last night, saying how much he missed her, how much he loved her, and how much he wanted to see her again. Then, a small brown owl flew into Harry's room, out from the dark, blue-grey sky. The owl landed softly on Harry's bed, and hooted happily, because of the fact that it could finally get some rest.  
  
"Skyla!" Harry exclaimed. He stroked Hermione's owl(which Harry had gotten Hermione for Christmas) on her head. Harry immediately noticed that Skyla had a letter attached to her leg, so he untied it and read the letter.  
  
  
  
'Dear Harry,  
  
Hi, Harry! It's me, Hermione again. I miss you like crazy! Is Sirius treating you well? I'm sure he is. He is so much better than...the Dursleys! I'm so happy for you now that you live with such a nice guy like Sirius. I'm not having too much fun here, all I do is eat, sleep, read, write to you everyday, wake up again the next day, then repeat what I did on the last day. I do hope you're having more fun than that. So...write back, Harry, the minute you finish reading this letter. I can't wait to hear from you again. Never forget that I love you, and more importantly, never forget me! Well...bye, Harry.  
  
P.S. By the way, please let Skyla rest for a while before sending her back. Maybe you could send Hedwig instead. Again, I love you!  
  
With lots of hugs, kisses, and love-Hermione.'  
  
  
  
Harry grinned, looking down at Hermione's neatly-written letter. He grabbed another piece of parchment paper and a quill, dipped the quill into a bottle of ink, then started writing back...  
  
  
  
'Dear Hermione,  
  
Hey, Herms! I miss you, too, like I said in my last letter. How are you? I'm just fine. Yes, Sirius is treating me well, he's almost like a second dad to me. And are you kidding?!? Sirius is a million times better than the Dursleys, of course he is! I'm sorry to hear you say you're bored. I'm not too bored here, with my 'second dad' here with me and all, but I'm certain it'll be so much more fun if you were here, too. So I asked Sirius if you could come over, and he said yes! I absolutely need to see you again-if I don't, I think I'll die. Don't worry, I'll never forget you. The only way I'd be able to forget you is to kill myself. Wait, no-I don't think I'll forget you even if I were to die. You're always on my mind, no matter where I go. Write back to me as soon as you can. I'll be waiting... Bye, love.  
  
P.S. I'll let Skyla rest here while Hedwig delivers my letter to you. She hasn't delivered any letters in weeks!  
  
Yours truely with all the love in the world-Harry.'  
  
  
  
Harry let Hedwig out of her large cage, then tied the letter he'd just written to Hermione to her leg. Hedwig stretched her wings out, and took off into the night. Harry then put Skyla into Hedwig's empty cage, and gave her treats to eat. He went back to lie down on his bed, when two different owls flew in, startling him. One, Harry noticed, was Pigwidgeon- the owl that Sirius had given Ron. The other one was an eagle-owl. The two owls were both carrying letters-so Harry untied them. He picked up the letter from Ron, and read it.  
  
  
  
'Dear Harry,  
  
Hey! How're you doing? I'm OK, I guess-except for the fact that Lavender hasn't sent me one single letter yet. What should I do? I think I'm going mad without her. Well, enough about me. How are you, Harry? Wait-I just asked that. Sorry. I really am going mad, aren't I? I miss Lavender. But-I didn't owl you so I can whine about my problems. I owled you because...um...OK, maybe I DID owl you to whine about my problems. Sorry, Harry. But weren't you the one who could answer all of our questions(alright, maybe Hermione could do that), solve all of our problems(OK, so maybe Hermione could do that, too), and give us advice on our personal lives(I'm not even going to say it this time!)?  
  
Oh. My. God. What the bloody hell is wrong with me? To tell you the truth, Harry, I think I'm still in love with Hermione. I don't know. Maybe it's a side-effect to me going mad. I know that you're going out with Hermione now, and you like her...but I just can't figure it out. Is it possible that I miss her being around me? I mean, of course I do. She's one of my best friends! But more than that...you know? Please, help. And don't be mad at me for thinking of Hermione like this. The last thing I want to do is ruin what you guys have right now. Reply to this letter... By the way, don't worry about Pig-he doesn't need any rest. He's been doing nothing but sleep all day. Bye, Harry.  
  
-Ron.'  
  
  
  
Harry gaped at the letter. 'Ron-still like Hermione? This can't be happening,' he thought. 'Please let Ron be going mad, oh please...' Harry took a deep breath and started writing back, chosing his words carefully so that he wouldn't sound too offended. After all, Ron was one of his best friends.  
  
  
  
'Dear Ron,  
  
Hi. This is Harry. I don't know what to say. I think you really are going mad, or at least I hope so. I know you're not trying to ruin what me and Hermione have, but honestly, Ron! I don't "like" Hermione-I love her! You know that, don't you? You let go of her a long time ago. She's not...yours...anymore. You have Lavender with you. Isn't she enough? I'm not trying to make you angry, but I think you should write to Lavender, and say you love her. I really think that that'll make you feel better. Besides, you do miss Lavender, right? Here's a tip-don't mention what you said in your letter about Hermione to Lavender. Tell me what job you're considering to try out for if you want. I'm thinking of being an auror. But I'll probably start the "job-hunting" this fall or something. If Hermione hasn't told you this before, then she said that she's thinking of taking the career of an auror herself. ...Bye.  
  
-Harry.'  
  
  
  
Harry folded up the letter, and sent it to Ron with Pig. Then, he picked up the other letter, which he noticed was written by Dumbledore, and read it...  
  
  
  
'Dear Harry,  
  
How have you been? I'm not doing too bad. I was just thinking I'd go to Hawaii this summer with Minerva, but I would think you'd be more familiar with her last name-McGonagall. Honolulu doesn't sound too bad, does it, Harry? Perhaps I should consider going there instead of going to Maui. That's enough of me. So...what are you going to be now that you've finally graduated Hogwats? Be a Quidditch player, or be an auror and work with the Ministry of Magic? Or maybe you could even be a professor, teaching young sorcerers to perform magic.  
  
I'm most certain there will always be a place for you in Hogwarts- especially the job of a professor of the Defence Against the Dark Arts classes-that is, of course, if you don't think that job is jinxed, like most of the school's popularity does. If you do apply for the job, I'm sure you'll be the best DADA teacher Hogwarts has ever had. Well, Harry, I've got to go pack for my vacation now. Send a letter back to me, alright?  
  
Sincerely,  
  
Albus Dumbledore'  
  
  
  
Harry laughed to himself. Dumbledore wearing sunglasses, sun-tanning with Professor McGonagall under Hawaii's hot sun was definitely a thought that made Harry laugh. Again, he started replying to the letter. 'I feel like Father Christmas, replying to all these letters!', Harry thought.  
  
  
  
'Dear Dumbledore,  
  
Hawaii sounds great! I have no idea if Honolulu is better than Maui...I've never been to those places in my life-so I apologize for not being able to help you on that. Maybe Minerva(can I call Professor McGonagall that, since I've graduated?) would know. As for my career, I've gotten offers to play as a professional Quidditch player from the Chudley Cannons, Puddlemere United, Wimsbourne Wasps, and Montrose Magpies. All of those teams sound very appealing. By the way, thank you for the job offer...I would love to be a professor at Hogwarts. However, no matter how much the sound of being a professional Quidditch player or being a professor at Hogwarts tempts me to take those jobs, I prefer to be an auror, helping the Ministry of Magic.  
  
Hermione also wants a career of an auror. So it would be nice to work with someone who isn't a stranger to me. I hope you and Minerva have loads of fun in Hawaii! Maybe you can send another letter to me when you get there, saying how it is. Oh, before I forget...I'm very sure I will NOT be the best Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher Hogwarts has ever had...Professor Remus Lupin is! Goodbye for now!  
  
P.S. Make sure to buy me a grass skirt from Hawaii-I've always wanted one of those, haha!  
  
-Harry'  
  
  
  
Harry sent the letter with the eagle-owl back to Dumbledore, then looked up at the pitch-black sky. It must have been well over 2 a.m., but Harry wasn't tired at all. He was too busy looking forward to Hermione's reply, that would probably arrive tomorrow. Then, there was a knock on the door.  
  
"Come on in, Sirius!" said Harry. Sirius walked into his room, wearing an apron with red and pink hearts all over it. Sirius's name had been cleared just last year, so Harry had left the Dursleys to live with Sirius, his godfather-who he thought was so much better.  
  
"Hey, Harry," Sirius said, frowning, and ruffling Harry's hair. "Why aren't you in bed?"  
  
"I...couldn't sleep," Harry answered, shrugging.  
  
"Riiight," said Sirius, nodding. "That would be the secret not-so- secret code for 'just thinking of my girlfriend.'"  
  
"How'd you know?" asked Harry, curiously.  
  
"Trust me," Sirius said, simply. "I know these things."  
  
"What, you had a girlfriend?"  
  
"Of course, what do I look like? A guy who has never been in love before?" Sirius laughed.  
  
"No, I meant that-er-" Harry was searching for the right words to say in his head, when Sirius interrupted.  
  
"Met her in my seventh year at Hogwarts." Sirius looked up at the ceiling, grinning. "Her name was Dawn Parks. Man, was she beautiful..." He turned to Harry again. "...But let's not go there."  
  
"Er-Sirius? I think I'm going to go to sleep now," said Harry, and Sirius nodded.  
  
"Alright, then...I've got to go back to cooking. Oh, and I'll be starting work early tomorrow-so eat whatever you want for breakfast. I'll bake a few muffins if you'd like, Harry. I'll just conjure 'em up in a second."  
  
"Thanks. 'Night," Harry said.  
  
"OK...good night," Sirius said, and walked out of the room and closed the door, after turning off the lights in Harry's room. Harry layed down on his bed, took off his glasses, put them on his bedside table, and went to sleep.  
  
The next morning, Harry woke up, because of the sound of a doorbell downstairs. He waited for Sirius to answer it, but then he soon remembered that Sirius had already gone to work. Harry sat up, put on his glasses, got dressed as fast as he could, and then ran downstairs. When he reached the front door, he opened it, and saw-  
  
"Hermione!! What're you doing here?" Harry asked, and Hermione sighed. Harry noticed that Hermione had brought Hedwig back in her cage.  
  
"I asked Mom and Dad if I could stay at your house for the summer, and they said 'no'. You know how mad I can get. I was furious at them, so I...I came here," she said.  
  
"Oh. Come in!" Harry said, and pulled Hermione inside. "Do they know you're here?" Hermione shook her head.  
  
"Probably not. After all, I did come here while they were sleeping." She looked down at the ground.  
  
"Are you hungry?" Harry asked, leading Hermione into the kitchen. "Sirius made some muffins last night for breakfast."  
  
"Yeah, thanks," said Hermione. "I haven't eaten anything yet."  
  
"I'm glad you're here. I haven't got anything to do all day!" Harry said.  
  
"Harry, are you going to take me back-?"  
  
"No, not until you want me to. I'll have to send Mr. and Mrs. Granger a letter saying you're here, though. I don't want them to be worried sick about you," said Harry, shaking his head.  
  
"Thank you. I really appreciate this," Hermione hugged Harry, and he frowned.  
  
"No kiss for the boyfriend?" he joked.  
  
"Yeah, that too." Hermione leaned over and kissed Harry.  
  
"Sit down," Harry told Hermione, as he handed her some blueberry muffins, and a cup of pumpkin juice. Hermione sat and started eating, while Harry also ate.  
  
"You know," said Hermione, thinking, while staring at the muffin she was eating. "Mom and Dad would kill me if they found out I was here."  
  
"Why? Is it such a crime to go visit a friend over the summer?" asked Harry, curiously.  
  
"No, no, it's not that. If it was Ron or Viktor-" Harry stopped eating, momentarily glared at Hermione with envy. Hermione sighed, and Harry shrugged, as he went back to eating his breakfast. "As I was saying, if I were to visit a friend like Ron or-"  
  
"Krum," Harry grunted.  
  
"-Or Krum," Hermione continued. "Mom and Dad would've said it was OK for me to go..."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"You know, it's just that...I like you more than a friend," Hermione said, as she stared at Harry's face. "OK, alot more than a friend."  
  
"What, they won't let you go out on dates?" asked Harry.  
  
"No, they would...they do. But they won't let me go out with..."  
  
"...Me?" Harry said, gaping at Hermione. She nodded. "Oh."  
  
"It's not that they don't like you or anything, Harry," Hermione said, trying to cheer Harry up. "Mom and Dad thinks that you're-well, erm..."  
  
"You don't have to explain, Hermione. I think I may know what you're going to say next," said Harry, in an attempt to change the subject. "So...I'm going to write that letter to your parents now...I'll be right back." Harry walked into the living room and got a piece of parchment, a quill, and a bottle of ink. Then, he walked back into the kitchen, because he didn't want Hermione to be left alone by herself. Harry sat down again, and dipped his quill into the bottle of ink.  
  
"What're you going to say to them?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Whatever you want me to say," Harry answered. Hermione smiled at him.  
  
"Dear Mr. and Mrs. Granger..." she said, and Harry wrote down what she'd said. After spending the next five minutes thinking, Hermione gave up, and said, "Can you try...?"  
  
"Sure," said Harry, reading what he was writing down out aloud. "Dear Mr. and Mrs. Granger, Hello...I know you are worrying about the whereabouts of your daughter, so I'm writing this in behalf of Hermione. Please don't be mad, but she is with me, and she is fine." Harry continued to write until-"Sincerely, Harry Potter." Harry sent the letter with Hedwig, and returned to the kitchen.  
  
"You make it sound so easy," Hermione simply said, with a pretend frown on her face. 


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: JK Rowling...own...everything. I...own...nothing.  
  
A/N: Thank you so much, Ms. Potter, for your too kind review! This chapter is dedicated to you. Enjoy...  
  
  
  
"Hello..." said Hermione when Sirius suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Hermione supposed he had Apparated into the house.  
  
"Hey Harry, you've changed alot since the last time I saw you!!"  
  
"Very funny, Sirius!" Hermione laughed.  
  
"Nice to see you again, Hermione! Have you come to visit Harry?" asked Sirius.  
  
"...Yes, I have. I'll go get Harry...he's just upstairs." Hermione stopped at the bottom of the stairs. "By the way, do you always finish work this early?"  
  
"No, afraid not. I usually come home around midnight, thanks to Cornelius Fudge, who orders people to do loads of work instead of actually doing any himself. I wonder why he's still Minister for Magic, when I could be a better one..." said Sirius, and Hermione raised her eyebrows. "Only joking, Hermione-just joking!"  
  
"Well, actually, I think you'd make a fair Minister for Magic."  
  
"Yeah, I think so, too," Harry, who had came downstairs, agreed with Hermione.  
  
"Hey...I came to tell you-uh-I'll be coming home a bit later than usual tonight...but it probably wouldn't matter too much since you have your girlfriend to keep you company, huh?" Sirius said to Harry.  
  
"Nope, not too much..." Harry said. "But why'd you Apparate here instead of just sending an owl?"  
  
"If you had looked out the window about three minutes ago, which was when I got the news that I had to stay a bit longer at work, you would have noticed that it was raining like crazy! You didn't expect me to let my new owl get soaking wet, did you?"  
  
"...I guess not. But I never knew it was raining...the weather was fine this morning!" Harry told Sirius, then remembered that Hermione was still standing beside him. "Oh! Hermione's staying for the summer."  
  
"OK. Hmm...it isn't raining now. So...I'd best get back to the Ministry of Magic. Have fun, you two!" With that, Sirius Apparated back to work.  
  
"What are we going to do today?" Harry asked Hermione.  
  
"...I don't know...Maybe we could go over to Ron's."  
  
"Er-Ron?" Harry briefly considered it, and thought it was a good idea to go visit Ron, but there was a few things wrong with it. Harry remembered that Ron hadn't gotten over Hermione yet, and just for that, Harry could say he was a bit mad with Ron. But even if he weren't mad at Ron for possibly being in love with his girlfriend, Harry wanted to spend time alone with Hermione. He wanted this day to be just him and Hermione-not him, Hermione, and Ron, the famous trio that always spent time together. "How about we don't go visit Ron so that we can be an actual couple...just the two of us?"  
  
"Wow, you're being awfully romantic...did I do something wrong?" joked Hermione, and Harry sighed. Hermione could tell that he was going to say something serious next.  
  
"It's Ron."  
  
"What about Ron?"  
  
"He wrote to me and he said...he said that he might still be in love with you," Harry explained. Hermione gaped at him.  
  
"W-what? Ron...love me...? You're kidding, right?" she said. Harry shook his head.  
  
"No...sorry. You know what, Hermione? Let's just...forget about him for now. I really don't want him to ruin our day."  
  
"You're right. So, we could go to...a Muggle park I've been to! It's beautiful, you've got to see it!" said Hermione excitedly, Harry agreed, and they left.  
  
When they arrived, Harry realized one thing-Hermione definitely wasn't lying after all. It was, infact, beautiful. It was covered in green grass and loads of bushes and tall deciduous trees. Harry and Hermione decided to sit under a cool shade made by a particularly huge tree. They were watching most of the people have picnics with their families, play with their dogs, and read or listen to music on the grass when suddenly, rain started to pour down. After nearly everyone, in panic, had put food back in their picnic baskets, commanded their dogs to come back to them, or ran into their cars, then hurriedly left. But since Harry and Hermione had brought an umbrella, they stayed.  
  
They stood up and leaned against the tree, observing the green blurrs which were mostly grass and trees getting soaked by the heavy rain. They didn't know how the sight of rain at a park looked so pretty, but it somehow just...did. No fewer than two minutes later, a strong wind came and blew away their umbrella, which went flying into the sky, and then disappeared with another swish of wind. Hermione, who happened to be in a rather bad mood, sighed. Harry turned to her and looked at her, hoping to find the reason why Hermione looked so sad and mad at the same time. 'It's hopeless,' he thought. 'I wish I could read people's minds, especially Hermione's...' So Harry decided to use the old fashioned way of finding out what Hermione was thinking.  
  
"Something wrong, Hermione?" Harry asked, and Hermione chuckled, leaning against the tree as if it was a pillow. Her hair was all wet now from the rain, and Harry supposed his was, too, since water was dripping down from it.  
  
"Isn't it funny?" she said, sounding a little tired. "How life treats you? Everything was going right...and then...Ron..." Hermione emphasized the word 'Ron' with a tiny bit of disgust.  
  
"Oh, you're thinking of what I said...before?" Harry said, looking down at the ground, remembering what he had said to Hermione before they came to the park, in a split second. Just thinking of it was as if someone had poured cold water all over him. "You don't...still have feelings for him, do you?" Hermione quickly pushed herself off the tree and turned to Harry, shaking her head furiously.  
  
"No, of course not!" she said. Harry faced Hermione once again, and put on a lopsided grin. "Don't you ever forget, Harry, that I'll always love you, and only you. I can never be sure what Ron thinks, and I don't care-but me and him are through." Hermione moved closer to Harry and kissed him. "Don't forget."  
  
"Don't worry...I won't, not after that," Harry assured her. "So...do you feel like going back to my house now? I mean, unless you want to stay out here, in this rainy weather..."  
  
"Alright, let's go back," said Hermione, and they walked back to Harry and Sirius's house.  
  
  
  
"Harry, Hermione, will you two be alright until I get back from work?" Sirius asked the next morning, pulling out thermometers out of Harry and Hermione's mouthes.  
  
"Yes, Sirius. We'll be fi-" Hermione started, but sneezed loudly into a tissue. Then she blew her nose on it.  
  
"Hermione meant to say we'll be fine...and she's damn ri-" Harry had also sneezed.  
  
"Whatever you say." Sirius chuckled, then looked down at the thermometers and frowned. "But you're both pretty warm. Just...don't go outside today, it's still raining for some reason. Terrible weather we've been having lately, raining in the summer and all...Well anyway, bye. I'm kind of late, actually..."  
  
"Bye, Sirius."  
  
"Thanks..."  
  
"Oh, no problem. Bye!" Then Sirius hurriedly disappeared to work.  
  
  
  
A/N: Late. Terribly. Sorry. 


	3. Chapter 3

Disclamer: Own nothing.  
  
A/N: I should get flamed or something for being so late at posting. I think it almost took like, three months!! Sorry...now I have school and all, but I'll try to post often. HTML tags will be used in my next fic, by the way.  
  
  
  
"I've got to learn how to Apparate!" said Ron Weasley angrily, stepping out of the fireplace and brushing all the dirty soot off himself with his hands. He stopped, then looked around, only to find himself alone in Sirius and Harry's cozy living room. 'Wonder where they are,' he thought. "Harry? Sirius?" Ron called out. When no answer came, he went into the kitchen at a slow, silent gait.  
  
"...Yeah, I know, I'm surprised that I still haven't tried this flavour of Muggle ice-cream..." came Harry's voice. Ron wondered who he was talking to. He decided to listen on for the other person's voice from behind the wall that stood between him and the kitchen.  
  
"Mmm hmm...but still, I don't think we should be eating ice-cream when we're sick, do you?" Hermione's voice echoed throughout the rather large kitchen. Wait-Hermione? What was she doing here? Hmph! How so very rude, them not inviting him over for summer! Well, Ron wasn't the type of guy who was about to stand here and take anymore of this. Ron trotted into the kitchen, with a triumphant look on his face, thinking, 'Ha HA! I've caught you red-handed, my dear friends!'. He closed his eyes and cleared his throat loudly, trying to get Harry and Hermione to notice that he was there, but forgetting to stop walking.  
  
With a loud 'OOF', Ron tripped and fell over a box of tissues, which was there for Harry and Hermione's-'nose issues'. Fortunately, this definitely caught their attention. Trying to fight back a great deal of laughter, Harry and Hermione walked over to the pretentious scene lying before them.  
  
"Bloody hell! Who put that blasted thing there?!?" Ron shouted, massaging his feet. He looked up to see his two best friends looking down at him, their eyebrows raised. Feeling the heat rising on his face, he smiled childishly. "H-hi."  
  
"Hi," Harry and Hermione said.  
  
Silence followed.  
  
"Hi," Ron repeated. "Hi..."  
  
"Are you going to explain what you're doing here, or just greet people all day?" Harry asked sarcastically.  
  
"Uh...I'll take door number three," said Ron, finally snapping out of his greeting stage, and standing up. "You-" he pointed to Harry, "-can explain what she-" Ron pointed at Hermione furiously, "is doing here-" he pointed down at the floor, "-w-with...you!" Ron now pointed back at Harry, who had no idea how to respond to that...'speech', which Ron had given to Harry and Hermione with plenty of pointing, like they were deaf or something.  
  
"Ron," Hermione said quietly, "what is so wrong about me being h-"  
  
"What is wrong," said Ron quickly, "is that you were probably invited here, but I wasn't!!"  
  
"Ron," said Harry, in the same kind of tone that Hermione used. "I'm sure if you were a majorly attractive, brilliant, loving, and kind young witch who just happened to be my girlfriend, say-" Hermione blushed deeply at this, and looked down at the ground. "-then I'm sure that I would've invited you, too, to my house for the summer holidays, but-" Harry screwed up his face, and shook his head. "-you're...not. You're just one of my best friends." Ron's eyes bulged, as the painfull and shocking truth hit him in full force.  
  
"Oh," he said. "Didn't know...heh..." Ron laughed nervously, as Harry nodded in response. "Guess I'd better get going, then...huh?"  
  
"Erm," Hermione gave a sideways glance at her raven-haired boyfriend, who nodded. "You could...stay for a while. I mean, if you want."  
  
"Blimey, you must pity me. A lot," Ron told Harry and Hermione, who looked at each other then back at Ron. He shrugged as he continued. "Well, I accept your invitation anyway, Hermione, Harry. Thanks."  
  
"You're...welcome, Ron. But first-" Harry moved towards Hermione and grabbed her arm gently, making her face him. "-can I talk to you for a minute, 'Mione?"  
  
"Sure," she replied. They both looked around at Ron, who shrugged once again and walked out of the kitchen.  
  
Once she were sure that Ron couldn't hear what they were saying from the kitchen, Hermione said, "Do you mind, Harry? I mean, Ron staying-"  
  
"No, not at all, Hermione," Harry said, smiling warmly, which made Hermione's insides melt. "We just need to drink-"  
  
"Drink what, Harry?" Hermione asked quickly.  
  
"This," said Harry, taking out a small bottle from his pocket and shaking it. The bottle's label read: 'Pepper-up Potion'. Hermione, reading the loopy writing on the bottle, sighed.  
  
"Do we have to, Harry? We're not that sick..." she trailed off. She clearly didn't like the peppery taste of the potion.  
  
"Yes, Hermione, we do have to drink Pepper-up Potion. It'll make you feel better," coaxed Harry.  
  
"Oh, but Harry, you know how much I hate that-"  
  
"For me?" Harry leaned in and kissed Hermione passionately.  
  
"Er..." Harry kissed her again, this time a bit longer.  
  
"What do you say now?" Harry asked with a wide grin on his face.  
  
"Well...I...it does leave a fresh, pepper-minty kinda feeling in your mouth..." said Hermione, finally giving in. She found it was rather hard to say no to Harry for almost...anything. "Fine."  
  
"Thank you," Harry muttered, forcing the potion down his and Hermione's mouths, making steam come out of their ears.  
  
"But tell me," said Hermione, "why'd you have to talk to me alone?"  
  
"I knew I would have to resort to plan B-almost begging you to drink the potion. I didn't think Ron would've liked to see that...er...particular scene," answered Harry, chuckling a bit. Hermione blushed and nodded in understanding.  
  
"Ron! You can come back in now!" Hermione yelled.  
  
"Uh..." they could hear the redhead mumble. "I'm not exactly alone anymore..."  
  
Ron walked back into the kitchen, holding hands with his girlfriend, Lavender Brown.  
  
"Hey guys!" she said enthusiastically. "Looks like you aren't gonna be alone anymore, huh?"  
  
  
  
  
  
Please review! Thanks. 


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: The usual; I own nothing but the plot and Hermione's parents' first names, both of which happen to be in this chapter. I also own a new character, Dawn Parks. Do you remember her? I think she was in the first chapter of this fic as Sirius's ex-girlfriend.  
  
A/N: Hmm...this chapter has R/L. There shouldn't be too much disagreements about that since I put R/L in Temptation is Callin', right? Oh, and I don't know why, but I made Hermione's dad sound a bit like a cross between Vernon Dursley and Ron...dear Lord, I've created a monster!  
  
  
  
Mark Granger frowned, looking down at a piece of parchment. It was a letter containing the whereabouts of his daughter, and who she was with at the moment. It didn't surprise Mark at all, though, that she was with the person that had wrote the letter, who just happened to be her boyfriend.  
  
"Elizabeth, dear, have you read this?" Mark asked his wife, waving the letter around in mid-air. Elizabeth looked up from her bowl of cereal, and sighed.  
  
"Yes, I have, hon. Why do you ask?" she asked absent-mindedly, half- knowing what was coming next.  
  
"You mean you actually don't care about this...this-"  
  
"No, Mark," Elizabeth answered sternly. "If you think about it, it was actually kind of...your fault that Hermione left so suddenly. You wouldn't let her go over to a friend's house for the summer!"  
  
"No, no, no...stop. The boy isn't a friend of hers, 'Liz." Mark was turning red from anger. "He's her b-boyfriend!"  
  
"So? That doesn't change anything. Really, Mark, Hermione's grown up now, she can take care of herself," replied Elizabeth soothingly. "And we've both met him, right? Harry seems like a friendly person. I mean, he must be if Hermione's attracted to him. You know, she is kind of picky on guys..." Mark sighed deeply while he thought of something to say to her in his defence. Elizabeth, enjoying the sight of watching her husband's face turn a light shade of purple with frustration, shook her head.  
  
"The guy is...is...dangerous!" Mark finally answered.  
  
"What? How is Harry in anyway dangerous?"  
  
"He is being...watched...possibly stalked...by that Voldemort every minute of his life!"  
  
"Sweetie, remember, it's You-Know-Who," whispered Elizabeth quietly. "And I'm sure Harry isn't 'being watched and possibly stalked by You-Know-Who every minute of his life'."  
  
"I don't care!" Mark spat out angrily, but Elizabeth knew better than to take this seriously. Mark's anger never did last that much, anyway. "Our daughter could be in trouble, Elizabeth. She could get killed if she gets too close to that Potter boy!"  
  
Elizabeth put down the newspaper that she had started to read. "No, she won't. You sound like you don't trust Harry, but I do. And you're making it sound like he himself is the Dark Lord! For goodness's sake, Mark, they're old enough to be able to protect themselves!" she remarked.  
  
"Ah, but-" Mark interrupted.  
  
"You're not writing to Hermione and ordering her to come back home. I'll make sure of that. She can stay at Harry's for the rest of the summer if she wants, agreed?" Elizabeth said, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Eli-"  
  
"Good. Now hurry up and finish breakfast. You don't want to be late for work, do you, honey?" Elizabeth questioned innocently.  
  
"Uh, no...of course not," mumbled Mark, scratching his head and grumpily walking over to the refrigerator to get himself some more milk for his cereal. 'Every time,' Elizabeth thought happily, looking up at her stubborn, but loving husband.  
  
  
  
~*~  
  
  
  
"Lavender?" Hermione said, startled. "What're you-"  
  
"Lavender had decided to drop by, see how I was. Apparently, Mum told her where I'd gone," said Ron, looking very smug about all this. "Isn' that right, Lav?" Ron snuggled with Lavender, who giggled shyly like a little girl.  
  
"Guys, go get a room," sighed Harry, and Hermione nodded, laughing quietly.  
  
"It's really you two that need to get a room!" yelled Ron, smirking. "Man, that Pepper-up Potion scene, I honestly-"  
  
"You saw?" Harry and Hermione quickly asked, their eyes wide in shock.  
  
"No, I heard. You need to get a sound-proof room, actually..." Ron replied, laughing at his own joke. Harry was gaping at Ron, while Hermione was giving him looks that could kill.  
  
"Well," said Lavender, making everyone jump. "Do you think...that maybe I could stay here for...possibly the remainder of the day?" Ron nodded furiously.  
  
"Yeah! Can Lav stay, too?" he asked, excitement dripping out of his mouth with every word he said.  
  
"Er..." Harry started.  
  
"Thanks, Harr! Knew I could count on you, buddy ol' pal!" Ron yelled, slapping Harry's back unexpectedly with so much force that Harry almost fell onto the floor. Hermione gave a fatal sideways glance at Ron, who was grinning from ear to ear. He was giving off a look that kind of said, 'My girlfriend! My girlfriend! My majorly hot girlfriend is here! I must be the luckiest man in the world!!'  
  
"Harr?" mumbled Harry. "Since when did you start calling me Harr?"  
  
"Since forever! Let's go somewhere now...Lavender is going to suffocate if we stay here any longer. We need to go outside otherwise Lavender will be depressed, therefore killing me inside and out..." Ron sighed, faking a very badly acted-out faint.  
  
"Good," Harry and Hermione both muttered. Most unfortunately, Lavender had heard them. That was when she started to...scream at them, not knowing they were probably being sarcastic.  
  
"HOW DARE YOU! I thought you were supposed to be Ron's two best friends!"  
  
"Erm...Lavender, calm down...we didn't mean-"  
  
"-YOU NEVER CARE! I'm the ONLY one who does!" Lavender turned to Ron, smiling innocently. "Isn't that right, Ron? Aren't I the only one who truly cares about you?"  
  
"Uh..."  
  
"Yes. Good."  
  
"Lavender," said Hermione, trying to change the topic, "why don't we all go outside so that you don't...erm...suffocate. How does that sound, hm?" Harry and Ron nodded, while Lavender's face lit up. She smiled again, nodding.  
  
"SHOPPING!!" she screamed. "Let's go shopping at Hogsmeade village! It will be so fun! Like...a double date or something! How does that sound...Ron?" Ron nodded yet again, staring at Lavender as if she were an angel of some sort. Harry and Hermione agreed to go to Hogsmeade, but only on one condition - to have dinner at a nice, fancy restaurant before they started shopping. Lavender happily agreed, saying that they should all dress up first.  
  
Lavender ushered them all upstairs, then told the boys to get changed into dress robes in Harry's room while she and Hermione went into the cozy- looking room that Hermione was staying in.  
  
"Hermione, you're going to loooove the dress robes I brought!" Lavender squealed.  
  
"Huh? You brought dress robes? Why? How'd you know we were going to need dress robes tonight?" a confused Hermione asked, although she had the impression that Lavender carried a couple of dress robes everywhere she went just in case there was a fancy ball or anything of that sort.  
  
"Oh, that. Well actually..." Lavender suddenly became quiet. She looked around the room as if she was trying to see if someone was spying on them. She looked down, started twirling a strand of her hair, and continued. "Hermione, you're really smart, and...I know you think I'm just this...really dumb blonde. But...see, I-" -she toned down the volume of her voice even more that it was now a mere whisper- "I learned something from Professor Trelawney in Divination. I kind of...just kind of...started to understand how to...fortell. You know...yeah. You must think I'm crazy, since you thought Divination was horrible, don't you?"  
  
Hermione started to laugh quietly. It was funny to see Lavender looking ashamed of actually learning something from a class. It was not too surprising, though, Lavender understanding something that Professor Trelawney said to her. After all, Lavender was one of the students that Professor Trelawney favored.  
  
"That's great, Lavender. It's amazing how you have the power to fortell the future! I do wish I was good at that kind of magic." Lavender smiled gratefully, as Hermione went on. "And you're wrong, I don't think you're dumb. I never did. I try not to be so prejudice, so don't worry...and don't ever think of yourself as just a 'dumb blonde'. I tell you, I once believed I was the dumbest witch in all of the magical world, being Muggle- born and all. Believing that never gave me too much confidence."  
  
"Thanks, Herm, you're a great friend," Lavender replied, before she quickly bounced back to her usual, very cheerful self. "SO! Wanna see something else I've learned at Hogwarts?" Lavender took out her wand, and waved it around in the air, saying, "Accio dress robes!"  
  
Suddenly, two dress robes, each beautifully designed, came flying into Hermione's temporary room. Once they had both been carefully set down on Hermione's bed, Lavender walked over to the door and closed it, giggling at what the two boys in Harry's room were saying: "Ron, I am NOT going to put that on! It's not..." "Not what? Not good enough for you, huh? Don't you dare make fun of the dress robes that my sweet Lavender bought for us!" "No, Ron, Lavender was very nice to buy us these, but I don't think this one's me..." "Oh, come on, Harry! It's 'not you'? Then what IS you?" "Well how should I know...?" "You should know because you're you, therefore, you probably would know what IS you!"  
  
Meanwhile, Hermione was gazing the two beautiful dress robes. One was a fancy, pearly white, while the other one was a simply designed, deep red.  
  
"Lavender?" Hermione asked. "Which one's mine?"  
  
Lavender turned around. "Yours is the one on the right. That red one."  
  
Hermione smiled, "OK, I think I'll go try it on...I'll be right back."  
  
"Sure," said Lavender, who was once again busy listening intently to Harry and Ron's conversation. Hermione carefully picked up the red dress robe, walked into the large, adjoined bathroom, and closed the door behind her. She quickly changed into the delicate clothing and looked at herself in the mirror. Seeing the reflection of herself, Hermione had to admit, the dress suit her perfectly, clinging to her not too loosely or tightly.  
  
Hermione turned from the mirror and shouted, "Lavender, the dress robe looks great! Thanks!"  
  
There was a muffled "You're welcome, now let me see you in it!" from the other side of the door that didn't sound like the normal Lavender. Hermione supposed it was just the door blocking some of the sound out.  
  
"OK...fine..." Hermione sighed and opened the door, after quickly looking at herself in the mirror one more time just in case there was something wrong with the dress robe.  
  
Slowly walking out of the bathroom, she gasped at the sight infront of her.  
  
  
  
A/N: Ooh, what's up with that? Sorry for leaving you at a cliffhanger. Please review!!  
  
~Rumiko Aida 


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